Whether it’s a day with your daughter and her husband, rambling through the local countryside before Sunday lunch in the village pub or an adventure walk along the wind-swept beach with the grandchildren, here’s what you’ll love wearing this winter.
Country casual from Scotland to New York
Brora is a Scottish company with several stores throughout the UK and now with a flagship store in New York’s Madison Avenue. Their clothes bring memories of heather covered moorlands, shaggy brown highland cattle and woolly grazing sheep to luxury clothing. They are best known for their cashmere and woollens. It’s the perfect choice for a blustery day.
All their items are colour co-ordinated so start by deciding on your palette. If you have grey hair their blues and greys will look stunning on you. Their browns work to enhance mid toned skin and hair and especially brown eyes.
Brora vintage appeal
Brora’s collection quotes from our youth. But at that time we could wear almost anything and look cosy and chic. Today, unless you are very young or very slim, it’s easy to look frumpy or plain bundled up against the elements in knitted and winter clothes. That’s because the silhouette today is not the one that was in fashion in the 70’s.
In 1968 I was wearing an A-line skirt in corduroy with a wide fair isle sweater. Today I would wear the same sweater but with leggings. Instead of a rectangular silhouette I would create a contemporary inverted triangle silhouette.
How to wear Nordic
If, like me, you’ve been gripped over the last decade by the spate of Nordic noir films and TV dramas then you’ll understand the huge appeal of Brora’s Icelandic mohair jumper.
My personal colour choice is Mink as I have brown to blond hair and a pale complexion. It blends well with my coloring rather than making a dramatic contrast. This keeps things low key and casual which is what I look for in country clothes.
This sweater accentuates your shoulders. So work with that and if you fall between two sizes I’d buy the larger size to ensure a loose-fitting top. To balance this you need to wear close fitting pants or leggings. You can build on this silhouette by looping a cashmere scarf around your neck twice if you need extra warmth. Just make sure that your shape looks stylishly top heavy not Michelin man all-over curvy.
By the way, I usually buy these basic Marks & Spencer leggings.
How to wear an A-line skirt
Here’s a corduroy skirt I love, it’s so easy to wear. In fact I’ve been wearing A-line corduroy skirts off and on for 50 years! This one from Brora comes in a lovely country green (Sorrel) and a toned down navy. Both work well for a Sunday lunch by a roaring fire in the pub. In fact if you’ve got a waxed jacket it’s probably green or navy and will look fab with this skirt.
While the very tiny-waisted model can tuck in a jumper, I’d stick with a close fitting top to accentuate the line of the skirt. That is, this time go for an upright triangle silhouette.
Take a look at the Brora Skinny rib polo.
I’d buy it in navy to go with the green or the navy skirt. It comes in red, black and white too.
It makes a warming layer under that waxed jacket while you’re outside and looks perfect when you take off your coat indoors giving just the right balance to the wider, heavier skirt. It’s nice and long so tuck it neatly inside the skirt.
Best ever Fair Isle cardigan
Here’s another way to do the triangle silhouette, especially if you think the skinny polo might be too clingy or not warm enough for you.
The Brora Fair Isle cardigan has a good boxy shape. It’s only 53 cms long which means it stops around waist level rather than hip level. This immediately defines your waist. Most of us mature ladies need as much definition as we can get in that region!
I bought the lambswool cardigan which is soft and gorgeous. But I might splurge and buy myself the one in cashmere for Christmas. Either cardigan will make you look great whether you wear it as the looser top over narrow trousers or the neat short top buttoned all the way up with wider pants.
These corduroy trousers in anthracite are a perfect partner though if you have someone to spoil you, demand a pair of these to-die-for cashmere joggers. Myself, I mainly wear my yummy little cardigan with well-worn jeans and dark trainers or a little mini skirt and thick black tights or leggings with lighter coloured trainers. Both looks work well for the pub though my mini skirt is too cold to wear for a country walk beforehand. A pub lunch without the walk? Naughty but nice.
I hope you love this selection from Brora as much as I do. Their clothes are carefully made in traditional woollen mills in Scotland. They are the new classics for a Fall and Winter wardrobe. Your daughter will love their luxury textures and subdued colours just as much as you do. So beware when you offer to lend her your jumper. You may never get it back.